Yes, you did read that right. I have voted for many parties since I turned 18. I voted Conservative at my first local election, Liberal Democrat in my first general election and Labour in 2015, but I have never been a member of any political party.
Except one.
In 2013, after watching a specific episode of Question Time on the BBC, I decided my affiliation would lie with the UK Independence Party. No, this isn't a joke. I genuinely believed UKIP was the way forward, lead by the charismatic, pint-guzzling Nigel Farage. I am embarrassed to say it, but it's true. I paid £2 to become a member of UKIP for a year.
I used to be a staunch anti-EU campaigner, even offering to leaflet my local area at one point although I never physically got round to it. I firmly believed that the "£350m a week to be a member of the EU" figure was wholly accurate and I was very angry at what I thought was the completely unelected politicians who used it. I was also angry at the "establishment"; a line still used by the UKIP clan to this day. I voted for the Liberal Democrats in 2010, based solely on their line on tuition fees. When they U-turned, I felt betrayed. David Cameron had specifically said that he would offer an EU referendum in his first term in 2009. That didn't materialise. I also believed that Labour caused the financial crash of 2008, although that was more me believing the cause was political instead of financial irregularities.
In short, in 2013 I was a very angry person. I thought the Westminster bubble were liars. In truth, I was looking for excuses as to why my own life wasn't working.
It was an odd time. Especially as an openly gay man, people questioned why on Earth I would support a political party who openly opposed equal marriage, but I had convinced myself that there were far more important matters in hand. I was of the firm belief that this money we were giving the European Union was of far more importance. Plus, I can safely say, I was pleased with the attention I was getting from the higher echelons of the party. My LGBT status was being used as a political weapon, (especially locally) and that made me feel wanted at a time where I felt I wasn't wanted by anyone at all.
As I say, I was a deeply unhappy person.
On Thursday, the United Kingdom goes to the polls to vote on our EU membership. I will be voting to remain a part of it, as I am now a far happier human being than I was a few years ago, and a better educated one. There's not a lot more to say in regards to that small period of my life. It is one that I'd rather forget.
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